Gail’s Baked Goods

Hi Her Campus Amherst!

My name is Gail. I am both a resident student and aspiring baker. This spring, I will be sharing of my simplest and most delicious recipes. Having lived in kitchen-less dorms during my Amherst experience, I know the challenge of baking in and out of kitchens in other dorms and will be sharing recipes that can be made anywhere without need of fancy kitchen tools.

As any Amherst student knows, our school is challenging. While some retreat to Frost and Merill to tackle work and class demands, I turn to butter and sugar to de-stress. For a longtime, I have believed that most problems can be solved with Chocolate Chip Cookies.

However, in light of Valentine’s Day approaching, I thought I would share a little bit my own recent love affair. It started over Christmas Break when I received Adrianna Adarme’s cookbook The Year of Cozy. The pictures and recipes are incredible, and I spent much of my break experimenting with both sweet and savory foods (the Chicken and Dumplings recipe is on point). Eventually I discovered a recipe that is my current obsession. Maybe it’s a betrayal to simple Chocolate Chip Cookies because I think I metaphorically cheated on them. Below I am sharing my own recipe for Salted Dark Chocolate Caramel Turtle Cookies that I adapted and tweeked from The Year of Cozy. Like a love affair they’re a bit more unpredictable than the ol’ chocolate chip but are kind of exciting because they are more mysterious. Maybe I take cookies too seriously?? You tell me.

This recipe is easy and can handle some changes. While I recommend dark chocolate, caramel pieces and pecans, feel free to experiment with other types of nuts and chocolate. I could see a combination of chopped walnuts or macadamia nuts and white chocolate chunks being something special. What I like about these cookies that while you can chill the dough, you also can bake them immediately, which is nice, if you don’t have a lot of time to bake. The key to making these cookies their best is adding a sprinkle of salt to the top of each. The sweet and salty combination makes them more sophisticated then your average cookie.

Recipe for Salted Dark Chocolate Caramel Turtle Cookies**recipe adapted from Adrianna Adarme’s The Year of Cozy

3 cups all-purpose flour

½ cup whole wheat flour

1 ½ tsp. baking powder

1 ¼ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 ¼ cup unsalted butter, softened

1 ¼ cups light or dark brown sugar

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 Tbs. vanilla

12 ounces dark chocolate chunks (I also like to throw in about a ¼ cup semi chocolate chip morsels)

½ cup chopped pecans

12 store bought caramels, diced

sea salt, for garnish

1. In a medium bowl, mix together flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment or in a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugars together until the mixture is a pale brown, about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time as well as the vanilla. Gradually add flour mixture until blended. Stir in chocolate chunks, caramel pieces and chopped pecans.

The dough can be transferred to the refrigerator and chilled for as much as a couple of days or baked immediately.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a #40 cookie scoop or a large kitchen spoon, scoop out balls unto baking sheet. Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt on top of each ball. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes until edges are lightly golden brown. Let cookies cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes before removing them and let them cool to room temperature before serving.

Makes 2-3 dozen cookies

For more information about me or questions contact me at gailsbakedgoods@gmail.com or check me out on instagram @gailsbakedgoods.